Model 3 Reservation Holders Get First Significant Update From Tesla

It appears as though Tesla Motors is providing Model 3 reservation holders with their first significant update since putting in pre-orders starting at the end of March.

Upon logging into their My Tesla account, Model 3 reservation holders are receiving this notice:

“Your Model 3 was reserved on 31/03/2016. Deliveries will begin in late 2017. You’ll be invited to configure based on the date of your reservation. If you have any questions, please refer to our FAQ. We invite you to submit suggestions and feedback within our forums. Engage with other future owners to share your excitement or ideas. To withdraw your reservation, you may request a cancellation.”

No real news there, other than Tesla re-confirming late 2017 for first Model 3 deliveries.

“So in order for us to be confident of achieving volume production of Model 3 by late 2017, we actually have to set a date of mid-2017 and really hold people’s feet to the fire internally and externally to achieve an actual volume production date of late 2017.”

“So as a rough guess, I would say we would aim to produce 100,000 to 200,000 Model 3s in the second half of next year. That’s my expectation right now.”

Tesla Updates adds:

“This is the first time we see the Model 3 officially in color blue. Furthermore, Tesla will notify its future customers when they can start configuring their vehicle based on the date of their reservation. And finally Tesla has added a link where reservation holders can cancel their order.”

Approximately 373,000 pre-orders have been placed for the Model 3. Even at the end estimate of 100,000 units into production in 2017, it will take awhile before Tesla fulfills all orders, but its still preferable to have a huge backlog, rather than little to no interest at all.

I do not think that they will be working on New Year’s Eve.
But if they do I hope that it is my model3 they will be working on. 🙂
We own 2 Teslas modelS and have ordered 2 model3 that is because these cars are way better than any other car today.

As you well know, there is no reliability data available for ANY new car that is not yet on the market.

Don’t assume the more expensive Bolt will not have issues. Like all complex products, it will have its share of problems. Can one do OTA firmware updates on a Daewoo Bolt? Who wants the hassle of going to a Dearlership, for software updates? Not me.

It’s under warranty so they should fix it for free. Thing is during those three days, the gasmobile they lent me cost more in gas than my EV in a month! So I’m paying extra for manufacturer and dealer incompetence. Hopefully, my M3 will arrive soon enough… Losing patience with crap dealerships and problematic software. Not sure if I wanna take it back on Monday so they try to update it again…

Not me! I own an early Model S. And I reserved my Model 3 on the 31st morning. And I live in California. I should receive one of the first cars off the line.

I had very few problems with my Model S, but there were some. Tesla service fixed them all quickly and efficiently with a minimum of trouble to me. Once they picked up and dropped off my car while leaving me a loaner and another time they repaired my problem in my own garage. I’ll take my chances with Tesla and be the first on my block with a Model 3!

So Bonaire,
are you insinuating that Musk is just another “whats in it for me” CEO out to make as much money as he can before he bails out and goes to another company like so many other corporate “leaders” do?

LOL,Elon was a multimillionaire before he decided to fight global warming…if Elon was a get rich CEO he could’ve made billions on wall street and on sub-prime mortgages before the great recession hit. Wake up man!

NEVER WILL THIS HAPPEN.. & If Repair costs Are as out of control HIGH as the Model “S” once the warrantee expires, With Parts available through Tesla Only At Highway Robbery Ludicrous Prices…..You will see many turn to the “WITHDRAW METHOD” on all these sexy Reservations…

evcarstugatso—-
You just proved you know nothing about owning a Tesla. My Model S had a few very minor problems and….it was under warranty just like the Model 3 will be. No cost to me. You should get a clue before posting.

They are cutting some costs, cutting back on # of service centers and superchargers to be deployed this year. This CFO is actually doing something to limit the spending. Without that, more stock selling would need to be done.

With virtually all the used Model S’s disappearing from the online CPO sites, it seems pretty clear that the Model S is in very high demand. The CFO would be abandoning his corporate responsibility if he did not advocate that Tesla should raise some of its prices, in the face of such demand.

Instead of complaining about a certain amount of inflation on certain options, perhaps you should consider expressing thanks that Tesla isn’t charging “all the market will bear”, as most companies would if faced with greater demand than they could supply.

Stimpacker — The price of automotive parts are heavily based upon volume. The higher volume a car maker orders for a part, the less they pay in price. Substantially so in many cases.

The original price of the rear facing seats was based upon a prediction of the uptake rate for that option. That prediction was used to get volume pricing estimates.

If the uptake of that option fell well below predictions, that has real impact on the price Tesla pays for those parts. Tesla has to pay more for lower volume.

So yes, Tesla’s cost very well may have gone up faster than the rate of inflation over the last 4 years. From the CPO Model S units I’ve looked at, the 7-seat option doesn’t appear in as many units as I expected. So it is entirely possible that Tesla over-predicted the number of people who would take that option, and they needed to raise their price to match real costs.

You just proved you know nothing about owning a Tesla. My Model S had a few very minor problems and….it was under warranty just like the Model 3 will be. No cost to me. You should get a clue before posting.

The beauty of Tesla Motors is that their service centers run “at cost”. They don’t make any money on the repairs. The model S and Model X are manufactured in low quantity and are on the high end of “luxury” vehicles. The cars are manaufactured out of aluminum. Given all of this, of course the parts are going to cost more than the average 1980’s ford escort. 😉

The one statement that stands out for me is “You’ll be invited to configure based on the date of your reservation.” Does this mean that those that made the effort to line up at Tesla stores in the early hours of the morning are not in line before those that ordered online after the Model 3 reveal, over 115,000 by then?

I’m pretty sure it isn’t simply “by date, then random order among those who reserved on the same date”. But nor is it simply time, or shouldn’t be.

For example, because the reveal happened on April 1 in my time zone, I made the reservation on March 31 about 20 hours before the reveal event got underway. I don’t think for a second this means I’ll be asked to configure before customers in the US who reserved after me – that would be pointless since Tesla is going to deliver cars to first CA, then west-to-east in the US, and only then to European markets (Norway presumably among the early European markets to be served).

If you stood in line in the morning and got an early number and then configured a 35k model and someone reserved online at midnight and then configured a 50k model, I’m sure they will get their built before you.

There are a lot of factors at play, as has been previously discussed. I think this is the list:

1. “Do not bind the mouths of the kine which tread your grain.” Tesla employees are first in line.

2. Location, location, location: Those closest to the Fremont factory will get priority. I’d expect that domestic deliveries will get some priority over overseas deliveries, altho probably not 100%; I’d expect to see some overseas deliveries start before all the domestic queue is exhausted.

3. The Golden Rule: He who has the gold, makes the rules. Those who order a Model ≡ with more options, with a higher sales price, get priority.

4. Tempus fugit. Those who reserved earlier, all other things being equal, will get their deliveries earlier. But that is divided up within each global region. And very rarely will all else be equal.

5. “The right hand doesn’t know what the left is doing.” Right-hand drive countries get served last. So if you ordered a base $35k Model ≡, and you live in Australia, expect to be the last served.

Now, all that said… there will be some variations on that, just as there are with Model S and Model X deliveries. Random events occur. If you choose an option which needs a part that Tesla runs out of, then your order will be pushed back in the queue. Contrariwise, if Tesla is still doing batch processing, which seems likely, then your order may get pushed ahead if you happen to choose an option which Tesla gives production priority over other options, even if that doesn’t make your car more expensive than most.

Bottom line: If you want to “game the system”, move to Fremont and go to work for Tesla. 😉

All things being equal you will come first, but then ultimately delivery time is affected by what region you are in and what car you configure (the loaded cars in the West Coast will come first). Also while you might get an invitation by order in line (subject to caveats above), your actual delivery date depends on when you configure.

For example, they might sent a whole batch of invitations all at the same time and date (as with Model X), and the ultimate order on delivery depends on how long you take to decide to configure and what options you chose.

I have managed a project to reduce time from 2 years to 1 year on a complex product . Removed people that did not want to commit . All worked extreme hours. Worked with vendors and got it done. I bet that US Calif orders will be shipped in Sept 2015. I hear all the steps being done properly to get the job done. I only wish I could be part of the team.

If only you weren’t just some random internet troll who would welch on a bet, even if you had 1/100th of those sums you would put in for a bet. If you’re serious, set up an escrow account, and put up or shut up.

The word “troll” seems to be thrown around an awful lot lately in InsideEVs comments. (Admittedly I may be guilty of that myself, occasionally.) Just because you don’t like what someone writes, that doesn’t automatically make them a troll.

for all the talk about tesla’s technical innovation, tesla is also very innovative with respect to marketing. the deposit program integrates a novel use of crowdfunding, to secure what is effectively an interest-free loan, with public relations marketing.

but gm is not going to give a dealer an order code years before a car is ever delivered. ultimately, for you to be able to put down a deposit on a gm car to a dealer, gm has to authorize the dealer to take orders on the car. the point is, gm would not do what tesla did: specifically, gm would not open orders on a car that was years from production.

this “deposit” program was very creative financing on the part of tesla in that it achieves a cash infusion for tesla with zero interest costs and zero dilution of existing tesla stock. as creative financing goes, it is far superior to the kind of “off balance sheet” financing methods famously used by john delorean:

There is nothing to stop GM dealers (or any other dealership) from taking deposits long before they have order codes. Such a rule simply doesn’t exist, and would be illegal for GM to impose on dealers in most states that have dealer franchise laws.

In fact, both of the 2 major Volt dealerships on SoCal started taking deposits to reserve GEN II Volts long before you could order them through GM’s dealer site.

a dealer can always make side deals between you and the dealer. but gm is not involved in those kinds of deals. that said, a dealer cannot use the gm name in any way that he wishes and he cannot misrepresent gm in his dealings with you. if the dealer does, gm would almost certainly terminate the dealership agreement and you would possibly have a reason to file a lawsuit against the dealer for fraud.

when it came to deposits for the chevrolet volt, my experience was that early dealers were given an allocation from gm. so when dealers were talking deposits, it was based on what the dealer anticipated that he would get. of course, the dealer could take a deposit in the hope that more deposits would change the allocation, but the dealer would have had to tell the depositor that he didn’t actually have an allocation to actually deliver a car. that was my experience with how it worked with the chevrolet volt.

but in each case, gm had nothing to do with the transaction. the situation with tesla is entirely different because tesla is actually taking the cash from depositors.

The deposit program is more of a gauge of interest than any capital raise. There simply isn’t enough money there for the prevention of an actual capital raise. Sure some monies went to pay down debt, but Musk specifically said he’d rather not rely on that money.

For a company that builds cars to order, this is the best way to find out what the interest level is. Remember, Tesla doesn’t have dealers lots to dump cars to.
Once the interest level is determined, they can then act accordingly.

Starting up a new car line takes far more money than was collected in deposits. Which by default then, for Tesla, means a capital raise and/or stock dilution.

Sorry, I maybe was too fast with my previous answer: below the blue Model 3, I also see a 9 digit number RN107329424. The question is: do you have the same number ? Then it belongs to the picture and colour – otherwise RN stands for reservation number and is unique for me.

The official budget proposal for the the party he belongs to clearly states that ONLY pure research for green energy will be funded.

All purchase incentives for all green energy will end. That includes purchase incentives for solar, wind incentives, and EV’s.

They call these “Market Distorting” incentives. Well duh — we want to distort the market so that EV’s have a chance to successfully break into the market, by giving them enough runway to get the type of mass production numbers that will allow them to compete with ice cars in price in the future!!

This isn’t some conspiracy theory. This is right in the House’s own publicly published budget documents.

However, they have found plenty of money to throw at oil and gas, so this isn’t some ‘small government’ ideological high ground of not using public money on subsidies:

“This budget encourages further exploration of oil and natural gas both onshore and offshore in North America on both private and public lands.”

So it comes down to whether or not you think Trump would ever veto a House budget bill.

Love Tesla and have my reservation in. But all this talk of rushing is making me nervous.

Regardless of how good or how smart you are, rushing something is a recipe for mistakes. I don’t want that in a car. I’d much rather they take a little more time and get it absolutely right. That will be better for everyone in the long run.